Challenge purpose: Repair of composite RTM parts

About the challenge
Composites are offering great stiffness for low weight. Due to these properties, they are frequently used in moving lightweight products like aeroplanes. However, today there are no real specs and processes on how composites, produced with resin transfer moulding should be repaired after damage.

Main section of application: 

• Aeronautics

Main cross-cutting topics: 

• Recycling

Scope of the challenge

• Composites are modern, lightweight materials commonly used in high-end aviation applications like helicopters, aeroplanes, … even automotive like the recent BMW i3.
• Given these objects perform in highly performant-moving conditions, they can get damaged by impact if they for instance hit a bird or any other object. As of today, there are no clear aerospace specifications on how a damaged composite part should be repaired.
• Ideally, the solution can be made in the field without disassembly of the larger composite structure. This will prolong the product life cycle and hence contribute to a more durable economy

Challenge objectives
The main objective of this challenge is to present and validate a composite repair methodology towards an aero tier 1 supplier which fulfils the requirements of their materials and aerospace parts.

The following objectives should be covered during the project:

• Damage assessment tools with NDT
• Damage removal
• Patching of the damage
• Quality assessment after composite pathing

Can you provide a solution to this challenge?

More information can be found here: https://www.rightweightnwe.com/application-form